Ch 146: Looking forward to the future.

"We're going to be late." said Rin.

"Just by one or two minutes." replied Akeno. "And that's deliberate. from what you girls told me, it will make her angry, and angry people are easier to defeat."

"You shouldn't fall into overconfidence yourself." frowned Rin.

"…You're right. I should be careful with that."

Akeno, accompanied with Chisato, Asuka, Rin, Britomart, Tamamo and Aife, reached the school.

They were about to turn the corner of the front building and reach the courtyard when they heard the sounds of a battle starting.

"Eh?" said Akeno, taking her Reality Marble pearl in hand as they ran past the corner.

Akeno saw six people present. Bell was shouting something, Darkness was busy removing a ball gag, of all things, from her mouth, while a pinked haired woman in a red leather outfit Akeno assumed was Medb was fighting a blonde-haired woman wielding a spear wrapped in white cloth, and a burly man with a red sword and red spear faced a strange silver-haired girl.

A girl with blue metal wings and a white tail, with each wing sporting three tubular shapes that could only be missiles, and a floating device from which came the black barrels of a minigun. Although there was nothing "mini" about it, since the two meters long barrels were more fit for a fighter aircraft than anything a man would carry. The girl was pointing it at the burly man, and they started rotating, when Rin shouted.

"What the hell is happening here?"

Her scream caused everyone to stop fighting and look at them.

"Melu-chan!" happily yelled Britomart, appearing in front of the silver-haired dragon-girl and hugging her, lifting her off the ground.

…

Melusine blinked, recognizing the giant, dark blue armor suddenly hugging her. The hard edges of the armor were uncomfortable, but she didn't mind.

"Britomart nee-sama?"

"Yes! I'm so happy to see you!"

"Wait, this…" started Medb, starting to understand she had made a massive blunder. "Are you not Lancer? Is she not Akeno?" she asked the woman that she had just attacked as she pointed her crop toward Melusine.

"I am a Ruler." frowned Jeanne. "And so is my companion."

"Hum, that's right, those aren't your usual weapons, Melu-chan!" nodded Britomart as she let her fellow Fairy-Knight on the ground.

"You must be Medb." sighed Akeno. "I am Akeno Himejima. It is nice to meet you."

"You are late! This misunderstanding is your fault!" scolded Medb, immediately and shamelessly shifting the blame.

Akeno rolled her eyes and turned to Bell and Darkness.

"Hi, Bell, Darkness. You seem to be doing well."

"Hi, Akeno. It's good that you guys arrived in time." smiled Bell.

"Yes." replied Darkness, her face flushed. Which seemed to be her face's usual state, as far as Akeno could tell.

She then turned to the blonde Ruler and "Melu-chan".

"Rulers, I would like to speak with your Masters, if possible. I can vouch for their safety, as long as they do not start anything violent."

"Akeno, I do not think they have Masters." said Rin, frowning. "Rulers are not normal Servants. They are Agents of the Counter-Force."

Rin was watching them warily, regretting that she had asked Scathach to take over Aife's duty of watching Atrum Galliasta. She had felt they had enough Servants escorting them already, and Aife could use a distraction. But Rulers all too often became Magus slayers, and few Servants could face them one on one.

"That is correct." said Jeanne. "But before we reveal anything about us, I would first like to know about your purpose."

"That is a reasonable request." nodded Akeno. "But that conversation is going to take some time, and there's still about eighteen minutes left before the end of our reality marble. Would you mind if Lancer and I deal with what we came for first?"

Jeanne and Melusine nodded.

"Medb, Darkness, are you still willing to duel with Lancer and I?"

"Yes!" eagerly exclaimed Darkness, taking a large shield and a sword from her inventory.

Medb only made a small nod, and faced Britomart, tapping the end of her crop on her palm.

"Do not think this thick armor will protect you from my blows, Lancer." declared Medb with an arrogant smile.

"As a reminder, the use of lethal blows, Command Spells and Noble Phantasms is forbidden. This is a duel to determine the hierarchy among us, not kill each other. The duel is decided when one Servant is incapacitated, or when one Master is incapacitated or chooses to surrender." stated Akeno, taking her swordstaff from her inventory and activating Augment.

She had mostly said that for the benefit of the two Rulers watching, so that there would be no misunderstanding.

"Are you ready?"

"Yes, Master." said Lancer, keeping her large sword extended slightly to the side, the tip near the ground ready to slash in an instant.

"Get it started already!" ordered Medb.

"I will defeat you!" declared Darkness, her voice trembling with excitement. The wrong kind of excitement.

"Then, Start!" exclaimed Akeno, walking toward Darkness with flexed legs, lowering her gravity center to be able to react quicker to sudden moves. She held her swordstaff with the blade close to the ground and kept her eyes on Darkness's shoulders. Her shoulders would give Akeno early signs about any arm movement Darkness would make.

On the side, Medb and Britomart were already clashing against each other. Medb was fast, and an expert in unarmed combat in addition to her crop being able to strike with far more power than its thin shape suggested.

But Britomart was even faster, and after a few attacks and counters, she managed to close her armored fist around Medb's right ankle as the latter tried a roundhouse kick. She used her grip to send her flying, and used Shunpo to appear near the spot where Medb would crash on the ground, ready to smash her with the flat of her blade. Medb saw it coming and corrected her posture enough to meet the flat of Britomart's sword feet first.

Focusing mana into her legs, Medb strongly kicked the sword away, trying to break Britomart's posture or force her to drop her weapon. She partially succeeded as Britomart had to change her footing, but before she had a chance to exploit het opening, she was forced to put her arms in front of her face to block Britomart's armored fist, and was propelled backward.

Ignoring the pain in her arms, Medb scowled. She didn't trust Darkness to defeat Akeno, so she needed to defeat Britomart quickly, but the enemy Lancer was faster and stronger than herself. She was the one being pressured!

She ran toward Britomart, determined to win.

Unfortunately for Medb, Akeno didn't intend to give her time.

…

Akeno frowned as Darkness tried to slash her with her sword two, three times. and frowned more when she easily parried two more blows, breaking Darkness's posture. She understood what Noah meant when he said that Darkness couldn't hit the door of a barn. She was hopeless. Worse, she didn't seem to benefit from any enhancement expected of a Champion's partner.

She used a foot to trip Darkness while tugging on her sword arm, and Darkness collapsed. Before she could get back on her feet, Akeno took something from her inventory, and dropped it in front of Darkness's face, making her freeze.

A black leather collar, connected to a chain, whose other end was held by Akeno. Darkness's eyes widened.

"Darkness, are you aware that I am a sadist?" started Akeno with a sultry voice and her best sadistic smile. "When you lose this fight, I will bring you back home. I have plans for you. Plans that involve you spending a lot of time in strict bondage, and things like crops and whips. I have many, many restraints and toys for you to experience. I will make you my bondage slave, and I will keep you chained at the feet of my bed. I will crop and whip you, and…" Her words trailed off as Darkness dropped her shield and sword.

"Ah… You degenerate, filthy woman!" panted Darkness, her eyes almost glowing as she picked up the collar. "You want to take me captive and hold me into your dungeon." she continued, as she opened the collar, and lifted it to her neck.

"You wish to defile my body, make me your plaything, and torture me endlessly!"

"But you will never manage to defile my heart!" exclaimed Darkness with a dopey smile, as she fastened the collar tightly around her neck.

Akeno snorted and lifted her left leg, before bringing it down on the chain leash, suddenly forcing Darkness's head down, almost close enough for Darkness to lick the boot pinning the chain to the ground.

"Aww!" gasped Darkness.

"Surrender now, slave. I want us to return soon, and we'll start your training. It will be everything you can imagine, and more." promised Akeno.

"Yes! I surrender!" cried Darkness, her voice soaked with lust.

"What! No! You useless, perverted moron!" yelled Medb in frustration.

She glared furiously at Darkness when Akeno used the chain none too gently to help Darkness up, much to the latter's pleasure, and walked toward Medb, dragging Darkness along. Britomart appeared behind Medb using Shunpo and seized her arms, forcing them behind her back.

"It's over, Medb." smiled Akeno. "I'm actually surprised you fought this well, considering your current Master seems so… lacking."

Darkness flinched. "You're so cruel! Scold me more!"

"It makes me wonder how your Champion has prepared you. Didn't he have three months to help you get ready?"

"Marcus helped the others, but not me." laughed Darkness in self-deprecation. "He said that if I lost, he would have to thank whoever defeated me. Such cruel words. I'm about to..."

She hugged herself tightly as she fidgeted, her legs pressed against each other.

Akeno nodded thoughtfully. She hadn't missed the slight tone change in Darkness voice when she spoke of this Marcus wanting to abandon her. If her instinct was correct, Darkness was hiding some genuine pain about being rejected.

"Well, you don't need to worry about that anymore, Darkness. You are mine now, and I'm not going to ever let you go." Said Akeno with a fond smile, patting her head for a moment.

Darkness oddly quieted down, her mouth agape, as if she didn't know how to react.

Akeno turned back toward Medb and walked to her. She took another collar from her inventory, this one engraved with multiple Stop runes, and locked it around Medb neck.

"You! You dare put a collar around this Queen's neck? Wait… what did you do?" exclaimed Medb, her voice turning alarmed as she felt her power being drained, and her crop dematerialized. It felt as if… as if she were back to being a normal woman, before she even started training herself to be a warrior!

"I am temporarily sealing your powers, until you learn to behave yourself. I do not want to risk being attacked at the first opportunity." shrugged Akeno.

Receiving a nod from Akeno, Britomart released Medb's arms. She immediately lifted her hands to the collar, trying to remove it, but while she could feel the smooth leather around her neck, the instant she attempted to remove it, she couldn't control her fingers anymore. As if they had become completely numb.

"Berserker, do you still intend to fight me?" asked Britomart, taking some distance from Akeno, Medb and Darkness.

"Of course!" grinned Berserker, also taking some distance from the others. "After seeing you handle Medb, I want to fight you even more!"

"No Noble Phantasms?" asked Britomart.

"Oh, come on, don't be a killjoy! Why are you so afraid of a fight with no restraints? It's only when I go all-out that I truly feel alive!"

"It's not that I do not understand, Berserker. But did you forget our mission? It makes no sense to risk killing each other."

"No, it makes sense." retorted Berserker. "If you die under my blade, you simply weren't strong enough to be useful, and your absence will change nothing. Now, less talking, and more fighting!"

Berserker charged Britomart. She sighed as she blocked the first strike, putting enough strength in her slash to break his momentum, and started casting Augment on herself as she parried the follow-up moves.

Since Berserker was too stubborn to reason with, and she didn't want to see a Noble Phantasm of unknown power and reach being unleashed in an area with many Masters and other Servants present, Britomart decided to go for the kill. With her already superior strength and speed further boosted by Augment, Britomart batted his weapons away, breaking his posture, and before he could recover, drove her sword into his chest, deep enough for the blade to emerge from his back.

Being worthy of his class, Berserker didn't let a trivial detail like being skewered stop him from trying to slash and pierce her with his own weapons, and Britomart had to hurriedly release her sword to grip his wrists before the weapons reached her. She kicked him away, dematerializing her sword before making it reappear in her hand.

"Had enough?"

"…You are strong." smiled Berserker, just before spitting a mouthful of blood.

His red weapons dematerialized, and for an instant, Britomart assumed that he was conceding defeat. However, that wasn't the case. His aura was skyrocketing in intensity, and the air around his fists and feet started to thrum.

Britomart guessed this was his Noble Phantasm, and she decided to use her own. Jumping to the side to find an angle where no one would be impacted by her own move, Britomart dematerialized her armor and took her sword in her own hands. She lifted the blade toward the sky, and wind quickly gathered around the blade. The hilt of the weapon also extended by three meters, turning the massive sword into an even bigger Lance.

"May there be victory and glory here! In the name of Britomart! Take thiiis! Tempest War Cry!"

Britomart brought her weapon down, creating a wind blade. Unlike the usual barely visible wind blades Britomart had used against Aife, this one was massive, easily fifteen meters wide, and its edge was brightly glowing with green light.

"You just kick and punch and whoever's left standing is the winner! ORA ORA ORA! I will send you flying!" exclaimed Berserker just before Britomart's noble phantasm reached him.

He used both of his fists covered by red light to punch the blade of highly compressed air and mana.

With a cracking sound, the red energy shattered the wind blade… But only on the immediate vicinity of his fists. The bulk of Britomart's attack still went through, causing deep cuts on his flanks, and the second part of Britomart's Noble phantasm triggered, causing the huge wind blade to separate into countless smaller ones. In an instant, Berserker found himself in the center of a tornado of green cutting winds.

When the tornado dissipated a few seconds later, Berserker was kneeling on the ground, bleeding profusely from dozens of cuts and three major wounds.

Berserker lifted his head with difficulty,

"Do you surrender, Berserker?" asked Akeno. "It is probably not too late for me to heal you."

"Don't bother." replied Berserker, shaking his head. "It was a good fight, Britomart."

"Yes, it was." nodded Britomart.

He turned his head toward Bell. "Master, I've let you down. I am sorry for being selfish."

"Berserker…" said Bell, his voice choking.

Akeno saw Bell about to tear up, and decided to take matters into her own hands. She used Shunpo to appear in Berserker's back and cast Greater Healing on him. The bleeding immediately slowed down.

Berserker lifted his head to protest, as if his pride as a warrior was injured or something.

"You shut up." sternly declared Akeno as he opened his mouth. "You lost, and the defeated obeys the victor. And you're of no use to me dead. No if, no but, no nothing. Am I clear?"

Berserker looked shocked for an instant, and then he looked down and started to laugh. "Clear. I'll obey you, until I save your life. Then we'll be even."

"I'm fine with that. Your debt will also be cleared if you save any of my companions rather than me." nodded Akeno as his wounds healed at a speed visible to the naked eye.

"Thank you very much, Akeno-san." said Bell as he bowed to her.

"It's fine. Do you acknowledge me as your leader, Bell?"

"Yes. I'll follow your commands until our mission is over."

"Thank you… Berserker, is your name Beowulf?"

"Yes. How did you find out?"

"Someone I know guessed from your physical appearance and the catalyst Bell used to summon you. There, all done."

Akeno smiled slightly as she walked back to Darkness and grabbed the chain dangling from her collar. Darkness's dopey smile returned. Holding on to the chain, Akeno turned to the two Rulers.

"Thank you for your patience. My name is Akeno Himejima, as you may have heard, and I am the leader among the people gathered here."

"I see." nodded the blonde Ruler. "But I am quite disturbed by the fact that you have another Master on a leash."

"Please do not pay attention to the pervert. This is what she wants." smiled Akeno as she looked back at Darkness.

"You sadistic monster… No matter how much you are going to torment me… I will never give in!"

Her mouth said no, but her perverted expression screamed Yes. She was already panting.

"…I can't contest that." sighed Ruler, deciding to preserve her mental health by not looking at Darkness directly. "But is it how you treat other people? I do not think I can approve of this."

"Darkness is a special case. You do not need to worry about this."

"…I feel like I want to step away from her." muttered Melusine, averting her gaze from Darkness.

"Are all of you Masters from… Outside?" asked the blonde Ruler. Akeno decided to mentally designate the two Ruler Servants as just Ruler and Melusine, since she didn't know the name of the blonde one.

Akeno shook her head and gestured toward Rin.

"This is Rin Tohsaka. A resident of Fuyuki City and a Master who agreed to assist us, after we told her our purpose... Have you both heard of the Servant named Angra Mainyu?"

"I have." nodded Ruler, frowning. "He comes from the era of Zoroastrianism, where the people attempted to cleanse themselves of their sins and become pure by transferring all their evils into a single youth, named Angra Mainyu. He became the first Avenger-Class Servant, and the only one that I know of."

Akeno nodded.

"According to our information, during Fuyuki's third Holy Grail War, the Einzbern family attempted to cheat by summoning an Eighth Servant, and Angra Mainyu is the one that was summoned. They sealed him within the Holy Grail, but also caused the Grail to become tainted by his evil as a result. Our mission is to prevent the other Masters from reaching the Grail first, and remove the taint."

"Assuming what you say is true, how do you intend to remove that taint? Will you try to make a wish about it?" frowned Ruler.

"And wouldn't that have the potential to backfire in a major way." chuckled Akeno. "The Grail would likely make that wish come true by releasing Angra Mainyu… No. All we need to do is touch the Grail, and those who sent us will cleanse it and force him back into the Throne of Heroes… Now that I told you our purpose, can you at least give me your names? Referring to you two as Rulers is a bit awkward."

Ruler smiled with a nod.

"Yes, that is fair enough. I am Jeanne. It is nice to meet you."

"Greetings. I am Melusine." nodded the silver-haired girl.

"The pleasure is mine. Jeanne, as is, Saintess Jeanne, the Maiden of Orleans?"

"That was in another life. I do not deserve to be called a Saintess." shrugged Jeanne.

Akeno didn't share her opinion, but only smiled.

"It is very interesting. One of my friends in my original timeline is also called Jeanne and is a descendant of Saintess Jeanne."

"Oh? Another me in your timeline had descendants?" smiled Jeanne. "That is one thing I would have liked to experience, but I never had the chance… If there ever is an opportunity, I would be interested in meeting her."

Akeno smiled, thinking that this could very well be arranged. For a second, she glanced at Medb, who was still trying to remove her collar as she glared at Akeno with eyes promising violence.

"She's a good person. Living in the shadow of a great historical figure caused her to make some bad decisions, but she got quite a bit of counseling and straightened herself out. She now possesses the same healing ability I have, and she intends to use it to treat as many people as possible."

Chisato and Asuka looked at each other and rolled their eyes. They knew enough by now about Noah's conditions to share his powers that they could guess just what kind of 'counseling' a girl having made 'bad decisions' would experience in his hands.

"She must make her parents proud." said Jeanne with a wistful smile.

"Unfortunately, they have passed away long ago. This matter aside, what do Melusine and you intend to do from now on?" asked Akeno.

"For now, we will simply observe your group. I believe you have been truthful, but we need to confirm it with our own eyes. I hope you understand."

"I would do the same in your position." nodded Akeno.

"Melusine and I will also try to catch the culprit who is draining civilians from their mana. After we obtain confirmation about the matter of Angra Mainyu, we will take a more active part in helping you purify the Holy Grail." decided Jeanne. Melusine nodded in agreement.

"Thank you very much. We appreciate it." gratefully nodded Akeno.

"Jeanne, Melusine, have you guys already secured lodging?" suddenly asked Rin.

"We have taken a room at the hotel." nodded Jeanne. "It is shameful that we had to resort to trickery, but we do not have money, and…"

"I was expecting that." cut Rin. "Do you want to come to my home, then? There's already so many Masters and Servants crashing in my place, two more won't make a difference. And I can already guess how things will turn out."

If Jeanne and Melusine were truly going to help them solve the issue with the Holy Grail War, they would very likely stay for that mysterious second crisis as well, so Rin wanted to secure their help. If something was dangerous enough that Noah had referred to the threat of Angry Mainyu as a mere appetizer compared to it, she needed to gather as many strong allies as possible.

"Please accept, Melu-chan. We need to catch up! And you can observe us all you want from up close." smiled Britomart.

Melusine exchanged a glance with Jeanne, silently asking her to accept.

"Then we will gratefully accept your hospitality." nodded Jeanne, happy to not have to resort to magecraft anymore to trick normal people for a place to rest and relax.

She was aware that agreeing to come to their home less than twenty minutes after meeting them was reckless, to say the least, but her instincts were telling her that they were good people, despite a few reservations about Darkness and Medb. And Akeno, who seemed entirely too comfortable with parading people on a leash, even if they were willing.

And Britomart had a point when she suggested that it would give her and Melusine more opportunities to observe them and confirm their words.

"Then let's return home. Unless you guys want to keep patrolling?" asked Rin.

Akeno thought for a few seconds and turned to Chisato, Bell and Asuka. "Can I ask you six to keep patrolling for a bit? I'll be busy with Darkness and Medb."

"Yes! We'll try to find that mana-draining Servant. Have fun!" grinned Chisato. Asuka nodded.

"Yes, Akeno-san." nodded Bell, wanting to prove himself.

"Thank you. And Bel, just call me Akeno. We're friends now, aren't we? Everyone, be careful about that Magus Slayer. Come with me, Medb."

Akeno turned and started walking away, dragging Darkness with her. Medb sighed and realized that she wouldn't be getting out of the collar by herself and followed as well.

"Jeanne, Melusine, let's go back home as well. I have enough free rooms for you two." said Rin.

The two rulers nodded at each other and followed, their outfits changing to their civilian clothes.

…

Scathach, in her materialized state, sat on the edge of a building's rooftop, several hundred meters away from her observation target. Astrum Galliasta was performing an experiment in his Workshop, mixing the content of several vials together, unaware that he was being watched.

She lowered her gaze two floors down, her eyes growing cold as she stared at the 157 children, aged eight to fifteen, kept in an artificial coma. If not for Akeno and her Master insisting that summoning that particular Caster was important, she would already have done something about this.

[Lancer, do you hear me?] asked Rin via the telepathic bond that linked Masters and Servants.

[Yes. That Magus hasn't received the catalyst yet.]

[Understood. I doubt he'll receive any package this night, so you can return if you wish. We met two Rulers sent by the Counter-Force, Melusine and Jeanne. They agreed to just observe things for now, and I'm bringing them to my home. I'm confident they will become allies soon.]

[I will come back, just in case they would turn hostile.]

[Thanks, Lancer.] said Rin.

Scathach rose to her feet and jumped to the roof of a nearby building, heading back toward her Master.

The apparition of two Rulers was another variable she hadn't seen coming.

Since she had become the Queen of the Land of Shadows and attained the Wisdom of Dun Scaith, gaining mastery in literally everything, as well as the ability to see the future, her life had become dull. Like a movie watched far too many times. Centuries after centuries of sitting on her throne, watching the world glide along rails toward a future that had no secrets for her, had left her wishing for death.

She had been completely shocked when something she hadn't actually seen with her Clairvoyance, actually happened. Someone was performing a Servant summoning, and the ritual had selected her as the target.

She could have opposed it, and the ritual would have switched to an actual Heroic Spirit, not a Divine Spirit like herself.

Instead, an intense curiosity flared up, and she welcomed the magic's grasp, letting herself be taken away from her palace.

Instead of the Holy Grail War she had foreseen, where one of her disciples, Cu Chulainn, was summoned as a Lancer and eventually defeated, and Irisviel von Einzbern sacrificed herself to prevent the release of Angra Mainyu, this Holy Grail War involved fourteen Masters, many of whom she knew nothing about.

Those new Masters were already creating ripples as they interacted with the world, causing the future to become increasingly uncertain, unpredictable, and Scathach felt like a curse was gradually being lifted.

For the first time in almost two thousand years, Scathach looked forward to what tomorrow would bring.